Discontents - a book review

Discontents by James Wallace Birch
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is not the type of book I normally read. Usually I stick to non-fiction, classics, and what my friend calls "potato chip books" - books full of empty calories meant just for fun and escape. Discontents is not one of those books! So reading my review, keep in mind that I am not a literary critic. I have not read many "protest" books to compare it to. But I think I would call Discontents a "protest" book. Although it was published in July of 2011, it seems to echo many of the ideas that we see in the Occupy protests that are covering the globe at the time of this writing (Oct 2011). Emory Walden has to retreat underground because of his role in the movement, but feels like his story must be told. To do this, he reaches out to an old high school friend and Discontents is the result.

Emory Walden writes a blog that is read by many people who are discontent with the current state of the government. After he returns to the US from Europe, he is approached by an older man who is physically unable to support the protesters, but wants to do his part by helping Emory. The idea is to help Emory mask his identity and thus "fly under the radar" so to speak. In this way his message won't be compromised by the threat of exposure. This leaves him free to support the growing movement of people in the streets, but also leads to complications with the few people who know him by his true name.

Discontentsis a mystery/thriller with politics, subversion, infiltration and the "Agency", with a little romance thrown in to add a more personal perspective. The style of writing was a little distracting to me at first, but not after the first chapter or so. I'm not sure if this is because I adjusted to the authors style, or if the story just began to flow more easily after it got going. I suspect a little of both. It will definitely make you think, especially about the role of government and corporations in our lives.

Discontents is definitely worth the read!

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